and across-the-board spending cuts take effect. it forces members of congress and president obama to spend the last few days of 2012 on the job. we want to bring in cnn chief white house correspondent, jessica yelen, we all know they would rather celebrate new year's eve elsewhere. how did they get here? >> reporter: it is such a good question, you know, candy, this grid lock in washington creates the eye-rolling. but the fundamental question goes to the essential differences between the two parties about the role of government, should it be bigger or smaller? about whether we want lower taxes or more of a social safety net. so while we have seen the principles, the president, speaker boehner, and now senator mcconnell and reid trying to get involved in stages in the last few weeks, it has always broken down because they fundamentally disagree about the big ideas over the core of this debate. they're fighting between the two parties. and this could get resolved in a matter of days or weeks. but the big difference, the issues could really take months to work out. >> can it be resolved

spending cuts. that angered republicans. obama's comments angered republicans. so i think they're back in the negotiating room, republicans pushing harder on the spending cuts side. that's what we've seen through the the day. >> ali, based on my years of covering washington, the longer there's no final vote in the senate and house, the more likely this whole thing could collapse. >> yeah. gives everybody a chance to think it through. this is kind of the contradiction in this whole thing. when you think back to the debt ceiling deal, you think back to the government shutdown. these are all eleventh hour deals. we've become accustomed to doing things before the deadline. there's some sense of urgency. what you've heard throughout the day is we don't like that the white house, that they're moving toward a higher threshold on taxes. the longer it doesn't get done, the more people say let's take a harder line yet. i like you wolf, we're going to sit here until it happens. i'm not sure it's going to happen. there are still some remarkable philosophical differences. a great deal of misinforma

years. as long as they had a hefty down payment. >> number two. cnn projects that barack obama will be re-elected president of the united states. >> the election. more than just about obama and romney, it was about socialism and capitalism, about spending and cutting, about what kind of role government should have in your life. >> number one is the fiscal cliff. lawmakers saw it coming, but didn't bother to pay any attention to it, until after the election. had they put politics aside and dealt with it earlier, who knows how strong the u.s. economy would be right now. >> don't miss our "top 10 of 2012" special. cnn revisits the biggest stories of the year in money, crime, politics, and even scandals. that's cnn, sunday night, 8:00 eastern. >>> happening now, members of congress are called back to work with time running out to avoid the fiscal cliff. we'll meet one man who's reaching into his own pockets to help america ease its enormous debt. and we're learning how north korea deceived the world, to launch a rocket with the ability to strike the u.s. wolf blitzer is off. i'm candy c

. right now, the leaders of the house and senate are sitting down with president obama in a search for an 11th hour deal to prevent severe tax hikes and spending cuts from automatically kicking in with the new year. cnn's chief white house correspondent jessica yellin is getting new details. jess can ka, what are you hearing about that meeting? >> reporter: candy, the president is going to explain or reiterate the position he took on friday, that he would like a plan that extends tax rates for people who make $250,000 and below but raises them for those who make more than that. that it extends unemployment benefits for americans. and if the president, i'm told will say if he does not get an agreement to that plan, he will ask the other leaders what they can agree to, what what they would like instead. if they cannot come up with a proposal that will pass the house and the senate, will ask for a vote on his measure. but that meeting, candy, is still going on. congre congressional leaders arrived at the white house for a last-ditch meeting just days before a new year's deadline. back on

avoid the drastic tax hikes and spending cuts that many fear will plunge the economy back into recession. president obama flies back from hawaii tonight to be ready if the senate comes back with a plan when it returns to work tomorrow. and house leaders are huddling with members on stand-by to return. senior congressional correspondent dana bash is following all of it for us. what are you hearing? >> there was a conference call of course members of the house leadership even, they're back in their districts, but there was a conference call today among those house republican leaders trying to figure out if and when the house should come back into session. two republican sources tell me they did not make a decision on this call. it's still up in the air. and a big reason for that is if anything can get done in the next six days, the ball is in the senate's court. the capitol is a ghost town. neither chamber in session. an eerie calm since the fiscal cliff only congress has the power to avert is less than one week away. from their home, senate democratic leaders is trying to figure